Drew Brees, Saints Cruise Past Mitchell Trubisky, Bears to Advance in Playoffs

The New Orleans Saints are three wins away from a Super Bowl title.

New Orleans defeated the Chicago Bears 21-9 in Sunday's NFC Wild Card Round at Mercedes-Benz Superdome and will face the Tampa Bay Buccaneers next weekend. Drew Brees, Alvin Kamara and the defense led the way for the victors, who will be playing in the divisional round for the third time in four years.

Chicago was unable to avenge its regular-season loss to the Saints and now enters an offseason of uncertainty with quarterback Mitchell Trubisky and head coach Matt Nagy.

Notable Player Stats

• Drew Brees, QB, NO: 28-of-39 for 265 yards, 2 TD, 0 INT
• Alvin Kamara, RB, NO: 23 carries for 99 yards, 1 TD; 2 catches for 17 yards
• Michael Thomas, WR, NO: 5 catches for 73 yards, 1 TD
• Mitchell Trubisky, QB, CHI: 19-of-29 for 199 yards, 1 TD, 0 INT
• Allen Robinson II, WR, CHI: 6 catches for 55 yards

Michael Thomas and Alvin Kamara Score in Return as Saints Cruise

The Saints have enough talent to win the Super Bowl, but there were some legitimate question marks coming into Sunday's contest. 

It was Michael Thomas' first game since Dec. 13, while Kamara missed a Week 17 victory over the Carolina Panthers because he was on the reserve/COVID-19 list. Those are the top two playmakers for the dynamic offense, so any rust figured to be an issue against a strong Bears defense.

Thomas looked like his typical self when he started the scoring with a touchdown catch in the first quarter, and Kamara at least drew additional attention his way to create openings for Deonte Harris.

Chicago struggled to bring the shifty Harris down in space, although its defense kept the Saints in check throughout the first half in large part because of a strip-sack by Tashaun Gipson Sr. when Taysom Hill was under center. The turnover led to a Cairo Santos field goal and broke up New Orleans' initial momentum.

With its offense doing nothing, Chicago's defense finally broke in the third quarter. Eddie Jackson went offside on a critical fourth down and set up a Brees touchdown pass to Latavius Murray to open up a two-score lead.

The floodgates opened from there, and Kamara found the end zone in the fourth quarter to all but end it. 

That both Thomas and Kamara scored in their returns to the lineup is a welcome sign for the Saints, who have Super Bowl aspirations. They'll need both playing at their best to win it all. 

Same Old Trubisky and Offense Doom Bears Again

Sunday's contest may have long-term implications for the Bears.

After all, Trubisky is playing on the last year of his contract, and there have been questions about Nagy's future throughout the season. NFL Network's Ian Rapoport reported on Dec. 13 that Nagy's job security is "uncertain" and reported on Sunday that Trubisky "still has a lot to prove" if the Bears are going to bring him back.

This was a chance for both to make a statement against one of the league's best teams in a pressure-packed situation, but Trubisky's teammate did him no favors in the first quarter when a perfectly placed deep ball went right through Javon Wims' hands in the end zone.

It was a sign of things to come for an offense that managed just three total points until the final play of the game. Trubisky ran out of bounds on fourth down, threw multiple passes short of the sticks on third downs and stalled in the red zone during a golden opportunity after a turnover, all while Nagy's conservative play-calling held the offense back even more.

As if the in-game issues weren't enough, Anthony Miller left the offense short-handed at wide receiver when he was ejected for punching Chauncey Gardner-Johnson's helmet in retaliation for his trash talking, much like Wims did in their regular-season matchup.

It also didn't help that running back David Montgomery, who was excellent at the end of the season, had no running room, but the same problems that have plagued Chicago throughout Trubisky's tenure continued in the second half with throws into double coverage, unnecessary checkdowns and an inability to convert the third downs needed to sustain drives.

If this is the end of Trubisky's time with the Bears, it will forever be remembered as a massive failure for the team that traded up to draft him ahead of Patrick Mahomes and Deshaun Watson. Another abysmal performance, this time in the playoffs, was a fitting end.

What's Next? 

The Saints will play the Buccaneers in the next round in another NFC South showdown. New Orleans won both matchups during the regular season.